The Supreme Court has affirmed Delta State House of Assembly Speaker, Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori, as the authentic candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2023 governorship election in Delta State.
The appellant, a former Delta Commissioner of Finance, David Edevbie, had asked the Supreme Court to re-affirm a judgement of a Federal High Court, which ordered the PDP to forward his name as candidate in the forthcoming governorship poll, after sacking Oborevwori over alleged falsification and forgery.
The PDP had declared the Speaker the candidate of the party after he won a majority of the votes cast at its May 25 primary.
However, the former Finance Commissioner, alleging falsification and forgery of documents by Oborevwori, submitted to the PDP in his expression of interest and nomination forms had asked the Federal High Court to disqualify Oborevwori.
Delivering judgement on July 7, Justice Taiwo Taiwo of the Federal High Court, had agreed with the plaintiff/appellant and subsequently ordered the sack of Oborevwori as the candidate of the PDP.
However, a three-man panel of the Court of Appeal, led by Justice Peter Ige, had in a judgement faulted the trial court’s decision and ordered the reinstatement of Oborevwori as the candidate of the PDP in the 2023 governorship election in Delta State.
Dissatisfied, Edevbie then approached the Supreme Court to set aside the appellate court’s judgement.
In a 23-ground of appeal, Edevbie faulted the entire unanimous decision of the Court of Appeal and asked the apex court to hold that he was the rightful candidate to fly the flag of the PDP in the Delta State governorship election.
Other respondents in the appeal besides Oborevwori are the PDP and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as 2nd and 3rd respectively.
In a lead judgement delivered on Friday, Justice Tijani Abubakar dismissed the appeal of Edevbie for lacking in merit.
The Apex court upheld the Judgement of the Court of Appeal and returned Oborevwori as the right candidate of the PDP for the 2023 governorship election in Delta State.
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